SAN FRANCISCO – One out of 10 Sikhs living in the San Francisco Bay Area has been the victim of a hate crime, revealed a new report released Nov. 18 by the Sikh Coalition.


Two-thirds of those reporting a hate crime said they had been physically attacked. The remaining third said their property had been damaged.

The Sikh Coalition surveyed 1,370 Sikhs living in nine counties in the San Francisco Bay Area, examining 827 adults and 543 youth.

More than one-third of Sikhs in the Bay Area, often characterized as the nation’s most progressive region, reported being called a racial or religious epithet. And more than a quarter of Sikh men who wore turbans say they have been unfairly stopped or questioned by police or airport security.


Turbaned Sikh boys are especially vulnerable to school bullying, beginning as early as elementary school, said the report, noting that three-quarters of children wearing patkas reported being harassed. Sixty-five percent of all Sikh boys reported being harassed in middle school.

Children wearing patkas are frequently called “diaper head” by their peers.


Spotted here